Lectionary Calendar
Friday, March 29th, 2024
Good Friday
There are 2 days til Easter!
Attention!
StudyLight.org has pledged to help build churches in Uganda. Help us with that pledge and support pastors in the heart of Africa.
Click here to join the effort!

Daily Devotionals
The Poor Man's Morning and Evening Portions
Devotional: August 14th

Resource Toolbox

August 14—Morning—Luke 18:7-8

"And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily."—Luke 18:7-8.

My soul, mark for thy encouragement, in all thine approaches to a throne of grace, what Jesus here speaks, and never lose sight of it. Remember how well acquainted he, who came out of the bosom of the Father, mast be with the Father’s mind and will towards his people, over and above the gracious exercise of his priestly office in their behalf. Now, my soul, do mark down distinctly what blessed things are here promised. First—God’s people are said in it to be his elect, his chosen, his jewels. "This people," saith God, "I have formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise." Secondly—God’s people are a praying people; "they cry day and night to him;" they are unceasing in their applications; and they wrestle, like their father Jacob in prayer: "Lord, I will not let thee go except thou bless me." Give me Jesus, and in him I shall have all things. He will subdue this corruption; he will soften this affliction; he will conquer Satan, and with him, all his temptations. Thirdly—God’s people will and must be exercised. There will be sometimes long silence at the throne. The enemy will endeavour to improve this to strengthen his temptation; he will suggest, ’God hath forgotten thee; he will return no more; he hath cast thee off.’ Lastly—mark what Jesus saith; "Shall not God avenge his own elect, who cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?" Yes, yes, he will, I tell you, saith one who could not be mistaken; "he will avenge them, and that speedily." When the hour of deliverance comes, it shall come so sudden, so sweet, so unexpected, that all their long waiting shall be forgotten; and it shall seem as if that promise of answering before they called was in it. And he will not only bless them, but avenge them of their foes. And whence all this, my soul, but because he is the Father of mercies, and God of all consolation. His people are his chosen, the gift of his love, the purchase of Jesus’s blood, the conquests of his Holy Spirit. Lord, cause me ever to keep those precious things in remembrance, and to hang on, and hold out, and never, never to give over pleading in Jesus, until I hear that precious voice, "Be it unto thee, even as thou wilt."

August 14—Evening—Romans 10:8-10

"The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart; that is the word of faith which we preach, that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth, the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.—Romans 10:8-10.

My soul, behold the tenderness of God the Holy Ghost to his people, in order to prevent the possibility of error, in their knowledge and enjoyment of Christ. It is not difficult to attain a clear apprehension, whether a soul be in grace, or not; for here the point is most plainly set forth; "The word is nigh thee." What word? The word of faith. Christ in the word, Christ in the promise, Christ himself the salvation of the sinner. And when a poor sinner hath been led to see who Christ is, and what he hath wrought, what he hath done for sinners, and what he is to them; the infinite glories of his person, the infinite perfection and completeness of his work, and the infinite suitableness of Jesus in every possible way that a poor sinner can need, by way of justification before God, and acceptance with God; then these blessed truths are so sweetly brought home to the heart and conscience of the enlightened sinner, by God the Holy Ghost, that he rests upon Christ as one perfectly satisfied with Christ, and neither seeks nor desires any other. So that by the lively actings of faith, the soul beholds Christ in the word, and in the promise, and takes him with both into his very soul, until Christ is fully "formed there the hope of glory." Hence, both the outward confession of the mouth, and the inward enjoyment of the heart, have a beautiful correspondence; the one speaks what the other feels; "for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh." My soul, is not this faith? And if so, what can dispossess thee of it? What shall stop thy joy or confidence in Jesus a single hour? If Jesus, the uncreated word, the promised word, the sum and substance of all the written word, be nigh thee, yea, in thy mouth and in thine heart; not only thine understanding knows Jesus, but thine heart lives upon Jesus; surely salvation is secure; yea, heaven itself is begun in the soul; for "this is life eternal, to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom he hath sent!"

Subscribe …
Get the latest devotional delivered straight to your inbox every week by signing up for the "The Poor Man's Morning and Evening Portions" subscription list. Simply provide your email address below, click on "Subscribe!", and you'll receive a confirmation email from us. Follow the instructions in the email to confirm your subscription to this list.
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile